Bowmanville, Ontario - Kevin Lacroix claimed his 8th victory at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park this Sunday during the WeatherTech 200. He took the win commanding the #74 Adaptive One Calipers/NAPA Racing Dodge in a race full of twists and turns.

 

Lacroix had a strong weekend, getting off to a good start during the Practice session on Saturday morning. He set the second-fastest time, a mere 0.020 seconds off the top spot. Later, in the qualifying session, he secured pole position, also setting a new lap record with a time of 1:21.809.

 

However, Sunday’s race wasn’t an easy win for the NAPA Racing driver. When the green flag dropped, he led the race but faced intense pressure from Gary Klutt and Andrew Ranger. The three drivers had pulled ahead before a caution on the second lap. Not long after the restart, Lacroix lost the lead to Marc-Antoine Camirand.

 

Lacroix was on a different strategy than the other drivers. He pitted early for fuel and then made two more stops to get four fresh tires. By making three stops, the team was gambling on a caution that would allow Lacroix to have a strong restart. However, the much-anticipated caution came late, just a few laps from the end.

 

With less than 10 laps remaining, Lacroix had to climb from the back of the Top 10 to the front, which he did. It was in Turn 5 on the last lap that he seized the victory, solidifying his efforts.

 

“We started from pole position, but it didn’t seem like it because we stopped several times for fresh tires while the other drivers didn’t,” Lacroix explained. “There were no cautions, so we found ourselves in the middle of the pack with only 10 laps to go. I started making my way back up through the field—I had seven cars to overtake in four laps. There was a lot of traffic, but we came out with the win.”

 

He concluded by saying, “I’m very happy with this victory; it’s my 4th this season. Although the championship seems decided, my goal was to win as many races as possible before the end of the season.”

 

The NAPA Racing team will be back in action at Delaware Speedway in Ontario on Sunday, September 8.